Global markets seek direction ahead of Fed meeting

By Belgin Yakisan Mutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Global stock markets on Tuesday continued to find foothold over firms' positive third-quarter earnings ahead of the US Federal Reserve's (Fed) Open Market Committee meeting set to be held Wednesday.

Analysts said that the Fed is expected to begin reducing its $120 billion in monthly asset purchases at the conclusion of its two-day meeting this Wednesday, adding that the text of the decision and the statements of Fed Chair Jerome Powell will shape the expectations.

The "wait-see" theme came to the fore in the stock markets Tuesday ahead of the decision, they said.

Meanwhile, concerns about high inflation rate also remain on the agenda.

The rising number of COVID-19 cases and the default risk in Chinese real estate sector will spread to other sectors -- continuing to add pressure on the Asian stock markets.

The minutes of the meeting of the Bank of Japan (BoJ), last week, revealed Tuesday that the bank members discussed the future of the support programs introduced during the pandemic.

Markets will monitor Manufacturing PMI data of Eurozone and Germany for October set be announced by London-based data provider IHS Markit on Tuesday.